The Care and Harvesting of Medjool Dates
By Basket Creations and More, LLC, the retail distributor for Bard Date Company, in Yuma, AZ.

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History of Medjool Dates

The care and harvesting of dates is a very delicate and labor-intensive process that takes an entire year.

January - February:
Dethorning: Depending on the size of the date palm, approximately 800 to 1600 thorns are taken off of each tree by using large curved knives.

February - March:
Pollinating: It is essential for each flower bunch to be pollinated evenly on both sides. To ensure even and complete absorption, the pollen is applied over the next several weeks. A generator and garden blowers are used in the application to the flowers.

March - April:
Arching: A slight arch is applied to the bunch to enable the bunch to be worked on properly. This is achieved by bending the bunch a little in order to form an arch.
Centers: The center of the bunches are cut out leaving only the crown, which consist of approximately 34 to 40 strings to allow for proper ventilation of fruit while it is maturing.
Off shoots: The off shoots are taken off the mother palm and put into the nursery.

April - May:
Thinning: Bunches are thinned allowing for room to grow and the proper ventilation.

May - June:
Securing: Bunches are tied and secured firmly to the trees to prevent damage from wind and weight. It also allows for spacing and continued ventilation.
Removal of excess limbs: Cutting off the excess limbs allows for easier access for the machines to reach the dates when picking begins.

June - July:
Rings are placed in the center of the bunches to allow continued ventilation.
Sacks are placed on the bunches and tied firmly to prevent birds from picking at the ripe fruit and to keep the dates from falling to the ground.

August - September:
Harvesting: The dates are picked as they mature.

October:
Cleaning: Sacks and rings are removed from the trees, cleaned and stored for the coming year. Trimming: Once harvesting is completed the bunches are removed and mulched back into the soil.

November - December:
Cleaning the off shoots and maintaining the nursery: This process is done by a very small crew and is necessary preparation for the next growing season.

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Discover Bard Date Company's Delicious Medjool Dates and Date Products. Basket Creations and More, LLC is the distributor for Bard Date Company, and offers superb quality Medjool Dates in the jumbo, large, extra fancy and fancy grades; along with chopped, pitted, and cooking dates. To tempt anyone's palate try their milk, dark or white chocolate date pecan clusters. They carry date sugar, date coconut rolls, date almond rolls, date crystals and date nuggets. They also offer trays for office parties, baby showers, house warmings, weddings, formal and informal occasions where you want to offer a delectable quality treat grown locally in the Yuma, Arizona, region. Stop by their shop in Yuma's historic downtown district and try one of their world famous date shakes.